This October, Robert is taking on the Irish Life Dublin Marathon, read his personal story.
“In 2008 I lost my Mom to cancer. It was something that I really struggled to cope with. I decided to give myself goals to aspire to and one of those was to run a marathon. In 2009 I trained and completed the Dublin city marathon but how the run went is not how I had hoped.
The week leading up to the race I got a chest infection and my doctor advised maybe not to do the run but as I had trained, I went ahead. While the first half went well, I started to cramp in my calves from mile 13 on. While I finished my time was near to 6hrs. I had always said I would be back but have yet to be in a position to do so. I have always struggled with my weight.
Even today I need to be very clued into what I eat each day. In 2019 I was diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes. My diet my not good and my weight was near 22 stone. When the pandemic hit in late April, I got very sick while I tested negative for covid 19 I was told I had every symptom.
For months afterwards I would be out of breath walking up and down the hall in our home. It has been a long struggle to build up my fitness ever since. In June 2021 I made a huge effort to reduce my weight and get fit.
Being healthy for my daughter and wife and for myself was a huge motivation. So, I started. One day at a time run after run I built up my fitness. In November 2021 I trained and completed the Killarney half marathon in a time of 2hrs 19 which I was thrilled with. I have kicked on since then continuing to lose weight and train. My whole journey has also helped my condition.
My diet has changed, and I am finally getting my head around what is required. While I am on medication for Type 2 Diabetes at the beginning, I did not change my lifestyle of eating unhealthy. I am proof that if you can get your head around it you can manage it better and improve your overall health.”
If you would like to support Robert’s journey, visit: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/robert-carey3?utm_source=Sharethis&utm_medium=fundraising&utm_content=robert-carey3&utm_campaign=pfp-email&utm_term=9f180bd6863146f2bb1d2ac865975887